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Those who have consumed sports coverage in the past should be aware that it is not unusual for unflattering leaks to appear after someone exits a team. It is therefore not surprising to see this is the case as a result of Carson Wentz’s trade.
Of course, there have been anonymous reviews on Wentz going back to November 2018. And then more in January 2019. And then more in October 2019. And then more in September 2020. And then more in January 2021. And then more in February 2021.
The last one on Wentz comes from Jason La Canfora (emphasis added):
In Philadelphia, it got personal (because of course) between Wentz and head coach Doug Pederson. Wentz, according to team and league sources, had also fallen out of favor with the locker room, unable to connect with a wide range of players, acting more in his personal interest than one might expect of ‘a quarterback and franchise leader. Loss and adversity had brought out the worst in him, he couldn’t stand losing his place against Jalen Hurts with aplomb. and, as reported here days after losing his job, a plethora of general managers and NFL executives were already predicting Wentz’s rapid exodus from Philadelphia after the season, even as Eagles officials pleaded that he there was nothing to see here and Wentz remains a key part of the organization.
A divorce was imminent, the league knew, and that was always going to limit the number of suitors and the degree of compensation for a player with a growing injury history, a propensity for turnovers and now years away from the time he was mentioned as an MVP candidate. Things really fell apart when sources said Wentz skipped exit meetings with Pederson. He went out of his way – passively-aggressively and otherwise – to make it clear that he didn’t want to be a part of everything that was going on in Philadelphia, and even after Pederson was fired a week into the season, the things between the quarterback and the organization continued to get worse.
Some have pointed out that Jason Kelce and Fletcher Cox were defending Wentz after his bench to play down the idea that he had lost the support of his teammates. But a dressing room is made up of many players, and what they say in public and in private doesn’t always line up.
Earlier this month, Joe Santoliquito of PhillyVoice cited a source who questioned Wentz’s support.
“Is there anyone here who will believe in [Wentz]? I can’t speak for everyone, but I have a good feeling that there are a lot of guys out there who aren’t doing it right now, ”said a source within the organization, who wished to remain anonymous. because “if he can get an NFL head coach fired, they’ll have no problem cutting anyone’s ass.”
All a respected veteran would say is “there is a problem here”.
The players “were pissed off” that Wentz reportedly planned to request a trade and wanted to retire if he won’t be the starting quarterback, sources said. They interpreted it as if Wentz was leaving them. Some thought it was Wentz giving up on himself, fleeing an open competition for the starter role with rookie Jalen Hurts.
Wentz never refuted the reports. In fact, he hasn’t said a look in over eight weeks – and it matters.
Everyone looked at each other thinking, does he want to get out of here? How are you supposed to follow a leader like that? a source said of the reports suggesting that Wentz wanted out, which started as early as December 20. “When he fixes it, do you really think anyone will believe it?”
That’s not to say Wentz’s dressing room was the only reason the Eagles traded him. But it certainly could have been factored into the equation. And, as Santoliquito mentioned to me on an upcoming BGN Radio podcast episode, Wentz is going to have to prove himself to his new teammates at Indy.
On a different note, what La Canfora had to say about Wentz’s relationship with Doug Pederson matches something Adam Schefter shared about 97.5 The Fanatic Friday morning. Transcript via CBS Sports (emphasis in bold):
“There are a lot of things that have gone wrong. We have the Jalen Hurts writing team. We have Carson who feels abandoned by this. We have the team trying to reassure him. We have Carson who didn’t get past that. We have Carson in trouble. Carson and Doug don’t talk for weeks during the season when the head coach and quarterback don’t talk for eight, nine, 10 weeks.“
There has been some setback on the deterioration of communication. Rob Maaddi says Pederson told him it wasn’t true:
Yes, I did point out that Doug himself told me after the season that his relationship with Carson was going well, that the reports that he and Carson were having issues are a “false story.” The fact that Doug was fired and Carson was still traded is further proof that this was not a Wentz-Pederson problem. https://t.co/zLbxpz839d
– Rob Maaddi (@RobMaaddi) February 19, 2021
Some have suggested to Howie Roseman that he disclosed to Schefter that Pederson and Wentz were not speaking. Although I cannot say that I know the source of Schefter, I do know that I had heard weeks ago that Wentz and Doug did not speak at the end of the season. And I can assure you that Roseman, whom I have often criticized, does not give me any internal information.
This is all moot in the vein that Wentz and Pederson are now both gone. But this is certainly a testament to the dysfunction that took place at the NovaCare complex. One can only hope that this will not continue.
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